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Anybody who knows me knows that I have a special place in my heart for Tom Colicchio’sCraft family of restaurants. I will go out of my way to visit any one of them – Colicchio has really captured what it is that I love about food, and I’ve never been disappointed when spending my hard earned money at one of his places. I especially love ‘Wichcraft, which is his line of casual sandwich shops. I order lunch from there at least once a week, because everything is fresh and delicious. I couldn’t believe it took me so long to pick up his ‘Wichcraft Cookbook, but once I finally grabbed a copy, I couldn’t put it down. Now, you may be thinking that someone paid me to say all of this, but I assure you, this is coming from a completely genuine place – I simply adore everything Craft. I actually got to shake Tom’s hand one day when I was at Chelsea Market with my dad, and I was so blown away that I actually got to meet him in person – this is why I moved to New York! Either way, I’ve already shared a few small recipes from this book – the pickled mustard seeds and the Italian salsa verde when I made brisket last week, but I really wanted to show you the beauty of this book. That’s why I am going to be posting a new recipe from The ‘Wichcraft Cookbook every day this week, after which I will give away a copy of ‘Wichcraft! All you have to do to enter is comment on any of the posts this week and tell me why you love sandwiches – it could be about what your favorite sandwich was growing up, what you like to make at home, or what a simple sandwich means to you. My mom can tell you that I’ve been a big sandwich fan since I was in junior high school, and I want to hear your stories, too! Believe me, you will definitely want to score a copy of this book after you see what possibilities the book has in store. You can also like me on Facebook or follow me on Twitter for more information on how to win!

To begin, I’m going to share with you this Slow-Roasted Pork with Red Cabbage, Jalapenos, and Mustard. This is the first sandwich that I made from the book, and the best part is that this pork recipe is used in two different sandwiches, so you can double up and make two exciting meals with one easy roast. I don’t think it gets much better than that. The pork is rubbed in an aromatic mixture of star anise, whole cloves, caraway seeds, and plenty of salt, then roasted slowly for four hours in the oven and shredded when it is fall apart tender. The pork is then placed on a ciabatta roll (or any bread you prefer) that has been slathered in Dijon mustard, and topped with tangy cabbage and spicy jalapeno peppers. The combination is absolutely perfect – a little salty, a little sweet, a little spicy…all of my favorite flavor profiles combined, just what a sandwich should be. If this doesn’t convince you of what a great little cookbook this is, I don’t know what will.

Your ingredients for the pork.

Place your spices in a spice grinder (or a coffee grinder – they work the same way).

Pulse your spices, then mix with your salt.

Pork – it’s a beautiful thing.

Rub your pork shoulder all over with the spice mixture, being sure to get under the skin.

Place your pork in a roasting pan, or a makeshift roasting pan, like I did.

Cover tightly with foil and roast at 250 degrees F for 4 hours.

While your pork is roasting, gather up your cabbage and other ingredients.

Shred your cabbage and combine with the olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper.

When your pork is ready, slice or shred it and place it on the bottom half of your ciabatta roll that is already coated in mustard.

Top with the cabbage and jalapenos., then toast in a 350 degree F oven for a few minutes.

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Combine the caraway seeds, cloves, star anise, and peppercorns in a spice grinder/coffee grinder (or, if you are going the old fashioned way, a motar and pestle) and grind the spices together until they become a coarse spice rub.

Rub the pork well with the spice mixture, getting under the skin if you didn't cut the skin off. Place the meat in a roasting pan or on a baking sheet with a cooling rack on top (like I did), and cover tightly with foil. Place in the oven for 4 hours, or until the meat is fork tender. Place the pork on a cutting board and slice or shred. Throw away any fat in the bottom of the pan.

Turn the oven's heat up to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, toss together the cabbage, oil, and vinegar, then generously add salt and pepper, taste, and adjust the flavors according to your taste.

Slice the ciabatta rolls in half, then spread the mustard evenly across all the bottom halves. Place the pork on the bottom halves, then put the bottom halves with the pork and the top halves on a baking sheet and place them in the oven until the pork is warmed through and the bread is toasted. Top the pork with the cabbage and jalapeno, then place the top half of the roll on top. Cut the sandwiches into halves and serve. The pork and cabbage keep well in separate, air-tight containers for 4 days.

I’ve made the ‘Wichcraft deconstructed hummus sandwich, and it was awesome (smitten kitchen has the recipe on her blog). I think sandwiches with flavorful and different ingredients can make for a really fun meal!

My favorites are the good, old-fashioned roast beef and hot pastrami sandwiches. With a pickle and some chips… perfect. I prefer a rye or sourdough bread and use brown mustard instead of American (savory instead of tangy).

Great. Haven’t had breakfast yet, and now I’m starving for one of these.

The beauty of sandwiches is their versatility. You could take any recipe on your blog and turn it into a sandwich. Even the desserts. Growing up, it was an open faced grilled cheese, with cheddar or mozzarella on white bread with slices of tomato, browned in the toaster oven– a simple good thing with the potential for greatness. I’d like to know what Colicchio does with a cheese sandwich in this book.

My favorite sandwich growing up was a turkey sandwich with Muenster cheese and loaded with lettuce, tomatoes, pickles and some peppers on a french roll.

The pork sandwich looks awesome! I definitely want to try this recipe, but cooking pork scares me. I tried to roast a pork loin before and it came out on the tough side. It ended with tears and I’ve been scarred since. Since you slow-roast this pork is it hard to ruin this recipe? Maybe I’ll give it a try.

Pork shoulder or butt and pork loin are very different cuts of meat – it’s pretty easy to overcook a loin, but shoulder/butt has lots of fat, so it’s very forgiving. I hope you try again – this is a great one for beginners!

I lived in Europe for 14 years and loved nothing more than a fresh, warm loaf of bread whether I was eating it with a bowl of pasta in Florence or at a pastry shop in Germany. However, my ultimate favorite sandwich was a Mohrenkopfsemmel – translated, chocolate covered marshmallow roll. I would treat myself to one of these insanely delicious sandwiches once a week. The bakery was located across the street from the school bus stop and the smell of the fresh rolls, breads and pretzels permeated the entire town. The sandwich itself is simple; take a Kaiser roll (preferably warm), cut it in half, place the chocolate covered marshmallow between the roll and SMASH! Proper smashing is key in making sure you get a taste of sweet and crustiness of the roll in every bite.

For me, a good toasty sandwich is one of the ultimate comfort foods. And my favorite thing to throw on a sandwich is any sort of good cheese & a fried egg. I love the gooeyness of the warm cheese & the runny yolk — perfection!
And I would absolutely LOVE to have a copy of this book because I’m a huge Colicchio fan as well. The man is a genius.

Oh, goodness, what a fabulous sandwich recipe and lucky me, I have purple cabbage in the house . . .I actually spend over 9 years as the owner of a regional sub sandwich franchise, and had over 450 employees making lots of deli-style sandwiches on freshly baked bread, with sliced to order meats and cheeses, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, a vinaigrette dressing, and “extras” like sprouts, pickles, pepperincini and sliced olives. We made a great sandwich, but nothing compares to the subs from the real Italian deli in the San Fernando Valley in my childhood. The rolls were big, chewy behemoths, piled high with unpronounceable Italian specialty meats, a couple of cheeses, peppers and warm olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Eating a “small” took me 45 dreamy, gluttonous minutes, as I chewed and chewed, discovering chopped raw garlic, ground peppercorns and kosher salt, adding their flavors to the fats, oils, biting vinegar,and lovingly cured meats.

The most important thing about these amazing subs, like the ones we made or those I make now, is that they were and are made with great love and care, as well as pride, respect and the very best ingredients.

One of my favourites is smoked turkey, brie, thinly sliced apple (softer apples as they are easier to bite through) and red pepper jelly on rye bread, cooked up grilled-cheese style. Mmmmm. Also, you can’t beat leftover roast beef on a fresh bun with lots of butter and salt – not the picture of health, but sooo good 😉

I would maybe roast it on low for 8-10 hours – it’s not cheating, but it will probably change the texture/flavor slightly. However, this pork is so delicious that I recommend cooking it any way you can!

I just made about four loaves of bread. Thats why I love sandwiches, because I bake so much bread.

Definitely going to pull a variant on this. I just braised a pork shoulder in pomegranate molasses, bourbon, and cinnamon. I’ve got candied jalapenos left, and some pickled cabbage, and a molasses mustard I made. Lunch for tomorrow!

I’m obsessed with sandwiches, to the point that my loved ones are tired of hearing about the epic sandwich I made for lunch, or whatever. The fun thing about sandwiches is figuring out what exactly constitutes a sandwich – a wrap, a pita, a taco, even a calzone. In that vein, when I’m in Europe, a kabob from a sidewalk cart is my favorite sandwich. I also love the simplicity of fried chicken biscuits or egg salad sandwiches. Ruebens are a classic favorite, especially when homemade (I usually use turkey because it tastes fresher). Grilling mushrooms or other vegetables and adding them to a basic sandwich, along with roasted red peppers and green olives (my new obsession) and of course melty, ooey gooey cheese is always a winner. Um. Did I mention I love sandwiches? (I didn’t even talk about bacon. I LOVE BACON TOO.)

As a sidenote, this particular sandwich sounds pretty tasty, especially because it involves pork. I really want to go to Iowa and eat a fried porkchop sandwich, because apparently they’re known for that. Roadfood.com is a great place to find great sandwiches all over the country – they posted a recipe for pimentio cheese that I SWEAR to you changed my life. Also NPR has this thing called Sandwich Mondays that you should check out on their website just for sheer amusement and ridiculousness.

Fried chicken biscuits are definitely a favorite of ours, too (we like to get them at Pies ‘n’ Thighs – http://news.piesnthighs.com/). I’m absolutely going to check out that NPR Sandwich Mondays – sounds right up my alley!

Mmm. This sandwich sounds so delicious.
When I was pretty young, and my mom who worked the night shift would still be sleeping, I would make a peanut butter sandwich on white bread with a little chocolate syrup and some m&ms. I don’t really make sandwiches like that anymore (just cookies).

[…] about sandwiches growing up, or anything else sandwich related. So far, I’ve made the Slow-Roasted Pork Sandwich with Red Cabbage, Jalapenos, and Mustard, the Roasted Pork and Prosciutto Sandwich with Pickled Pepper Relish, the Meatloaf Sandwich, and I […]

[…] was when you were a kid, or anything else you love about sandwiches. So far, I’ve made the Slow-Roasted Pork with Red Cabbage, Jalapenos, and Mustard and the Roasted Pork and Prosciutto Sandwich with Pickled Pepper Relish, so this is the third installment in my […]

[…] leave a comment on this post or any other ‘Wichcraft Cookbook post! Yesterday I shared the Slow-Roasted Pork with Red Cabbage, Jalapenos, and Mustard, and today I wanted to show you the book’s versatility by using the leftover roasted pork […]

[…] ‘Wichcraft post, so I figured it would be fitting to do a dessert. So far, I’ve done Slow-Roasted Pork Sandwich with Red Cabbage, Jalapenos, and Mustard, the Roasted Pork and Prosciutto Sandwich with Pickled Pepper Relish, the Meatloaf Sandwich, the […]

[…] leave a comment on this post or any other ‘Wichcraft Cookbook post! Yesterday I shared the Slow-Roasted Pork with Red Cabbage, Jalapenos, and Mustard, and today I wanted to show you the book’s versatility by using the leftover roasted pork […]